The Pipettes

We were going to use this intro to explain what the Pipettes have been up to since their first assault on the charts three years ago, but the sheer number of lineup changes since then has proven too confusing for our inferior brains - sorry guys! Cutting to the chase, they're now a sibling duo comprising Ani and Gwenno Saunders, who've ditched the polka dot frocks and 60's pop of their debut in favor of a discotastic '80s sound for album number two. Already sold, we gave Ani a call to find out what we can expect from the all new Pipettes.

It's very noisy in the background. Where are you at the moment?"I'm actually sitting in a train station in Reading because I'm on my way to record a Christmas song! I'm off to [producer] Martin Rushent's studio, which is in his house - can you believe that?"

You released a festive song a few years back. Are you making it a group tradition?"I hope so! I mean, we've missed out a couple of Christmases, but I think we're getting back on track now. Martin said he's going to do the Wall of Sound better than Phil Spector, so let's see how that works out! It's going to be a lovely warm Christmas song we hope."

The Pipettes lineup has changed dramatically since your first album. What happened?"Well, as soon as Rosay and Beth decided to leave, the album came together really quickly. We were lucky that they hadn't written any of the songs, so it didn't really affect us musically. We spent six weeks solid on the album, and then unfortunately it was one thing after the next - members came and went and the whole process was prolonged. Everything's been really long-winded, so I still can't believe the album's actually coming out!"

Was it an easy decision to carry on with the band?"We'd gone through so much in writing the album that it would actually have been more effort not to record it. We drafted in Beth and then she left a week into recording, so at that point we just thought, 'Ouch, this really isn't our year!'"

How would you describe your sound now?"It's difficult because Gwen, myself and our band members Jon and Vincent all have such different influences. The album is essentially a disco album, which is something we all wanted to make. We've been listening to a lot of '70s New York funky house, but then there's Abba and Stock Aitken Waterman influences from Gwen too. Oh, and personally I'm a big fan of '90s Max Martin!"

Maybe you could get in touch with Max through his Myspace account?"What a great idea! I always read about these artists who do that, though I suspect most of them have a mummy or daddy to help things along. God, I sound so cynical!"

The album's quite a departure from your debut. Were you worried about losing fans?"Whoever had been in the band, we were never going to make another '60s girl group album. That record very much represented what was going on in Brighton at the time it was made. Actually it's a bit of a shame, because I've read some bad reviews of our new album which seem to be entirely based on the music people wanted us to make, rather than what we've actually made."

You've put out two singles already. Are you pleased with the response they've had?"Really pleased! We genuinely have no expectations for anything, but the response has generally been positive, so we're pretty chuffed."

Do the singles reflect the album?"I would say they do - you've got the ballady disco in 'Stop The Music', whereas 'Call Me' is one of those relentless pop songs. Our new single is probably the most commercial song on there, so I think the three together give a good all-round view."

What's the next single?"It's called 'Thank You' and we both love it! It's got a bit of an Atomic Kitten vibe actually, because we do this talking bit in it."

What's your opinion on the UK charts at the moment?"Everything is major label which is a real shame. We've had some major label encounters in the past and you just don't get to do what you want. In fact, we started this album on Interscope, and we were thrown in with all sorts of co-writers and producers who didn't understand what we wanted to do at all. They even gave us songs people had written specifically for us, which was frightening. We just thought, 'Is that what you think we sound like?'"

Have any of these songs since been recorded by other artists?"No! Luckily we haven't been in one of those Britney-Kylie 'Toxic' situations! If we'd been offered a 'Baby...One More Time', believe me, we'd have been all over it."

Finally, do you plan to change up your sound again in the future?"Honestly, we're probably going to change the sound completely again on the next album. It's probably going to annoy the fans, but we can't help it!"